1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for winding and twisting yarn onto a hollow spool. The inline twister comprises the following elements: a rotatable spindle, a bottom flange securely fastened to the spindle having a catch on the outer periphery, a removable interlocking top flange positioned on the spindle, means for positioning the spool concentrically about the spindle, a twister ring concentrically positioned about the spindle having a slit, and a rotatable traveler positioned on the twister ring having a hook inwardly directed toward the spindle.
The method of winding and twisting yarn onto a spool comprises guiding the yarn adjacent to the spool. This yarn is then positioned adjacent to the slit in the twister and is allowed to pass therein. The spindle on which the spool is contained is then rotated so that the catch-equipped bottom flange contacts the yarn and holds it tight. As the yarn is rotated by the bottom flange it contacts the hook equipped rotatable traveler positioned on the twister ring and this combination of rotating flange and traveler provides the means for inserting twist into the yarn as well as wrapping the yarn about the spool. As the yarn is wound about the spool the twister ring is reciprocated so that the point of collection varies about the spool.
The present invention utilizes a minimum amount of equipment in accomplishing a task that has required three separate operations in the past. The three separation operations involved winding the yarn on a winder, twisting the yarn on a twister and then rewinding the twisted yarn on a second winder. Thus, a time, cost, and energy saving is realized by using the inline twister.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Presently, in the textile industry there is a need for packages containing wound and twisted yarn. Yarn on spools having a length of from 81/2 to 13 inches, an overall diameter of 6 to 12 inches and a "tail" of about 6 inches which is tied onto the leading end of a subsequent yarn package are required by rug, carpet and cloth manufacturers. These spools of yarn must contain a twist of about 1/2 to 3 turns per inch so as to feed freely into a tufting or weaving machine. The number of turns is determined by the ease with which the yarn can unwind and feed into a machine while not having so many turns that the yarn loses its ability to become fluffy after tufting. The current process of forming such packages of twisted yarn involves three distinct steps. First, the oriented, fibrillated, ribbon, multifilament or other type of yarn produced on a production line is wound onto aluminum spools by continuous winding machines. These machines are capable of being threaded without interruption of the output flowing from the production line such as an extrusion line. Second, the filled spools are transferred to a so-called "twister machine" where the untwisted yarn is unwound from the aluminum spools and twisted onto bobbins. Third, the filled bobbins are removed and placed on a rewinder machine where the yarn is again removed and uniformly wound onto cardboard cones for shipment to a customer.
As can be readily imagined, such an operation involving several intermediate steps tends to be costly and time consuming both in terms of machinery and manpower. Any process which can take the yarn from the production source and directly convert it into a shippable package will substantially lessen production and handling cost and greatly facilitate the entire operation. Up until now, no one has been able to provide such a one-step process for winding and twisting yarn.
The primary reason no one has been able to combine all three operations into one is the fact that no one visualized using our claimed slit twister ring which would allow yarn to be wound directly onto a shippable package. It also appears that the industry was searching for a more complicated solution to this problem and overlooked the basic approach recited herein.
It should also be noted that the prior art method, aside from being more cumbersome, is limited as to the type and quality of package which can be produced. The textile industry, in general, requires a shippable package wherein the yarn is uniformly wound in such a way that it will not slide off the ends of the spool while in transit or storage and yet will unwind evenly, without snags, when placed on a tufting or weaving machine. These requirements have necessitated the use of a hollow cardboard cone rather than a hollow cardboard cylinder. The cones themselves are hard to manufacture and cost twice as much as an ordinary cardboard cylinder, but up until now, these cones were the only devices which would allow the yarn to be easily withdrawn.
Several inventions have been patented which have tried to remedy some of the existing problems such as improving a twister ring or traveler. The most relevant patents are:
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,398,220 (1968) and 3,492,389 (1970) both by M. I. Port et al. which disclose a process for continuously producing a plurality of packages of bulk yarns from polymeric material. The process comprises: extruding the film material, stretching and drawing the web to orient the film, slitting the film into a plurality of flat ribbons, false-twisting each ribbon to form a yarn, texturizing the yarn to form bulk yarn and winding the bulk yarn into packages.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,546,873 (1970) of P. T. Slack discloses a machine for twisting and winding yarn into a package having drive control means to reduce the torque during threading up to allow the machine to follow any reduction in the speed of delivery of the material to the machine without increasing the tension in the material beyond its breaking point. Also disclosed is a suction waste disposal tube into which the leading end of continuously produced material may be deflected during threading-up.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,083,724 (1937) of G. D. Major discloses a filament twisting device whereby a bundle of filaments can be fed onto a rotating object such as a cone or spool without stopping the rotating member in order to start the winding operation. Also disclosed is an automatic threading ring which encompasses a ring having a path through its periphery through which thread may move until it is picked up by a traveler.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,550,761 (1949) of R. V. Blackwood discloses a traveler ring which has an upper and lower ring member which together form a channel in which a continuous floating ring is contained.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,962,239 (1934) of G. H. Gilligan discloses a ring traveler and support therefore. This patent teaches the use of a C shaped traveler.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,020,873 (1935) of A. M. Bowen discloses a spinning or twisting device which is basically a C shaped traveler.
None of the aforementioned patents disclose the inline twister of this invention nor the method of winding and twisting yarn from a continuous source onto a spool to form a shippable package all in a single operation.
The general object of this invention is to provide a method and apparatus for winding and twisting yarn onto a spool in a single operation. A more specific object of this invention is to provide a new process which allows yarn to be continuously fed from an extrusion line or other production source to the inline twister which winds and twists the yarn onto a spool to form a shippable package.
Another object of this invention is to provide a twister ring which can easily be threaded without the need of manually passing the yarn through it.
A further object of this invention is to provide a traveler which is capable of being rotatably mounted on a split twister ring. The advantage of this traveler is that it cannot easily fly off and strike an operator.
Still another object of this invention is to provide a yarn package having multiple layers of adjacent helical windings of yarn extending between two parallel end surfaces wherein the yarn is wound so that the width between adjacent helical windings gradually increases from the inside to the outside of the package.
Still further an object of this invention is to provide a time, cost and energy saving for winding and twisting yarn onto a spool to form a shippable package.
Other objects and advantages will become apparent to one skilled in the art based upon the ensuing description.